1. Field of the Invention
This invention is related to an image processing method and apparatus, and in particular to a method and apparatus for displaying an image on a monitor before printing.
2. Related Art
Recently, color image processing systems have come into wide use, so that monochrome printers are being replaced by color printers. As a result, the problem of an image on a monitor display not exactly matching the image output by the color printer, has become important.
One of the reasons for this problem is that a color printed by the color printer is not necessarily the same as the (ostensibly) same color displayed on the color monitor. Research to solve this aspect of the problem, by ensuring that the color displayed on the color monitor and the color actually printed by a color printer, match, has recently been widely pursued.
To this end, research for an adequate preview function (that is, the function of displaying a probable printing color, on the basis of a prediction of how the desired color will be printed by the color printer) has been carried out. A "masking method" and a "look up table method" are examples of well-known techniques. As a result, it is possible to get a better quality image by color image processing than before.
However, even with such processing, it is hard to get a more precise preview image, in a case where the kind of output device (printing device) to be used, is changed.